


After the Fire Comes the Flood

by eveningstar477



Category: The Flash (TV 2014)
Genre: Almost but not really, Angst, Emotional Hurt/Comfort, Father-Son Relationship, Fluff and Angst, Gen, Hurt/Comfort, Minor Injuries, Vomiting
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2020-12-23
Updated: 2020-12-23
Packaged: 2021-03-10 23:35:02
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 879
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/28265502
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/eveningstar477/pseuds/eveningstar477
Summary: Barry has a tough time dealing with a bus fire and its fallout. Joe comes to the rescue.
Relationships: Barry Allen & Joe West
Kudos: 3





	After the Fire Comes the Flood

**Author's Note:**

> Short and (hopefully) sweet - my first Flash story! Courtesy of a prompt list and a random number generator, I started with: “That was a brave thing you did” and “Can you make it to the bathroom?”
> 
> Warnings for blood mention and almost-vomiting (it’s me, when do I not use vomit as a plot device 😳) Ambiguous setting but I imagine it to be season 2 probably. 
> 
> Typical disclaimer: I don't own the show or the characters, just enjoy writing them!

“That was a brave thing you did.”

Joe closed the front door, casually hanging up his coat and waiting to see if Barry would respond. The young man in question was curled in on himself in the corner of the living room couch, head bowed, and simply shrugged at Joe’s declaration.

“Diving into that burning bus? You know none of those people would have made it out if you hadn’t been there.” Joe took a seat on the couch.

“But I couldn’t save her. That last little girl…Joe, if I’d only been there 10 seconds earlier! She was so young-” Barry’s shoulders heaved with a sob.

“Oh, Barr. C‘mere.” Joe stretched out an arm, and Barry practically fell into him, burying his face into Joe’s sweatshirt. 

Joe sighed, feeling Barry shake and his shirt grow wet with tears. As often as he’d comforted Barry through the years, it never got easier to see his son in distress. 

Barry’s sobs died down, eventually, and his gasping breaths started to even out. Joe ran a soothing hand down his son’s back.

“Barry, you can’t blame yourself. It was a freak accident, nothing and no one could’ve predicted that bus would go up in flames.”

Barry just shrugged again, turning his face further into Joe’s shoulder. Joe sighed, then grabbed Barry’s shoulders and pushed him back so he could look into his eyes.

“Barry. Look at me, Barry.” Barry reluctantly shifted his gaze to meet Joe’s. “It was not your fault. You hear me? Not. your. fault.” Barry acquiesced, finally nodding. Joe knew that things still weren’t completely right - it would take longer for Barry to forgive himself - but this was a good start. Joe gave him a small smile, adding, “You know you can always talk to me about these things, right? You don’t have to deal with it alone. That’s why there is a Team Flash, you know.” Barry gave a halfhearted, lopsided smile in return. 

“I know, Joe.”

“Good. Now how about we go see about some food?” Barry grimaced, but Joe reached for his hand anyway to guide him off the couch. But when his hand made contact with Barry’s, the young man inhaled sharply and pulled his hand away.

“Hey, hey - you hurt?” Joe asked, reaching for Barry’s hand even as he pulled away, gently turning it palm up and uncurling fingers. Joe gasped, met with the sight of a deep cut and numerous burn marks. “Barry….why didn’t you have Caitlin check you out? Are you hurt anywhere else?”

“Might’ve turned an ankle, but it’s fine. I’ll heal.”

Joe grimaced. “Yeah, but that hand will take some time, even for you. We need to get this cut cleaned out, or it’s gonna get infected. Can you make it to the bathroom?” Barry nodded, and Joe helped him to the bathroom with a strong hand under one arm. 

Joe sat Barry down on the toilet’s closed lid, then busied himself with gathering a washcloth, antibacterial cream, and burn ointment. 

“Alright, soap and water first.” Joe eased Barry back to standing, and watched as his son gingerly rinsed the cut, all while pointedly avoiding looking at his hand directly. Barry sat back down, and Joe started applying the various creams.

“Seriously, Barr, why didn’t you get Caitlin to take a look at this?” 

“I - Joe, it looks like that girl’s body. She - oh, god” Barry suddenly gagged, his whole body jerking and his good hand flying up to his mouth. 

“Okay, okay,” Joe soothed, quickly grabbing Barry by the shoulders and rotating him over the edge of the bathtub. Barry heaved a few more times, tears trickling down his face, but nothing ever came up. He panted over the tub for another few seconds before collapsing sideways onto Joe’s shoulder, spent.  
Joe sighed, rubbing his hand gently up and down Barry’s back. “You haven’t eaten much today, have you Barr? I bet that’s part of why you’re feeling so crappy.” Barry made a negative sound, but Joe cut off any protests. 

“I know you don’t want to eat, but you’ve gotta have something, or you’re gonna crash completely. Are you feeling ok for me to finish wrapping this?” Barry nodded, then dragged himself into a sitting position again, head tilted back against the bathroom wall with his eyes shut. Joe quietly finished bandaging him up, then gently prodded Barry back towards the couch.

“Chicken noodle?” Joe asked as he tugged a blanket over Barry’s legs. That got a lopsided smile, so Joe retrieved a can from the pantry and set about heating it up. 

Joe was pleased to see Barry eat nearly a full bowl of soup. Though still not adequate for his speedster metabolism, it would at least provide some much needed sustenance. With the dishes in the sink and a movie loaded into the DVD player, Joe sank down on the couch again, and Barry moved to put his head in Joe’s lap. 

Smiling, Joe noted “it’s been a while since we hung out just the two of us. It’s nice.” Barry hummed, body relaxing completely as Joe gently carded his fingers through Barry’s hair. Hitting play on the remote, Joe grinned as the opening notes to “Singing in the Rain” filtered from the speakers.

**Author's Note:**

> Let me know what you thought! Kudos and comments make my day!
> 
> Come find me on Tumblr: eveningstar477.tumblr.com  
> Requests are open!


End file.
